Find out all about the production process
Technological machinery now combines with operations performed by hand, but the production procedures at Ferrari Cav. Bruno have not changed. They have merely evolved while maintaining an artisanal approach.
Far from a place of impersonal industrial mechanisms, the plant is a temple in which the mastery of Bruno Ferrari lives on.
This is how the renowned Ferrari Coppa, the authentic Emilian Coppa speciality, is created.
1. Quality control and meat preparation
As soon as the meat arrives, our operators check the consistency and characteristics of the cuts and select only those that conform to high quality standards.
Once the chosen cuts have been trimmed, their temperature is monitored with a thermometer. Before the meat can be salted, its temperature must drop to 5 degrees. This is why it is allowed to stabilize overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Preparation of the curing mix, massaging and salting by hand
This is the phase where we unleash all our added value: experience. The blend of salt and spices is the same secret recipe created by Bruno Ferrari, a hand-ground curing mix containing ingredients that the same trusted supplier has been providing for the past forty years. Salting is still performed by hand, twice, without churning, while delicately massaging the meat so that it absorbs the salt at depth. Wholesome ingredients without flavourings and painstaking dedication to detail: this is where we differ. Well-balanced meat and spices of tantalizing fragrance: a crucial phase where the Ferrari Cav. Bruno Coppa speciality acquires its unique flavour.
3. Filling the casings, binding and hand-stitching
During the next phase, each Coppa is packed into sewn pork pleurae and treated with vinegar, which helps the casing to keep the Coppa soft. Pork pleurae are odourless and flavourless, unlike intestines, widely used in this sector for casings. We also decided not to use synthetic membranes as we believe that tradition and quality also depend on these small details. After having bound each piece with the aid of machinery, our operators stitch them again by hand, using twine with care and experience.
4. Drying and curing
Our products are allowed to rest in the refrigerator until they reach a balanced consistency, quite compact but not hard. Once the products have lost all their water in the cold rooms, the drying stage begins in departments equipped with software to monitor trends and timescales, with graphs allowing the humidity and temperature levels in the rooms to be kept under control. Alternating the drying and humidity phases in an adjustable sequence of starts and stops is essential if the products are to dry to the required degree and acquire the incomparable flavour of our Coppa speciality. The parameter settings in the computer are always checked to ensure the system functions properly and are the result of years of experience, research and analysis. The curing period may vary from four months to a year.
5. Labelling and shipment
The production process in the plant draws to a close and our Coppa specialities begin their journey to other parts of Italy.
Ferrari Cav. Bruno also ships products on behalf of third parties and supplies important restaurant chains, large-scale retail channels and private citizens.
We are ready to meet every Customer requirement and can also supply skinless and vacuum-packed products.